The use of an endoscope for examining a body cavity is well known in the art. The diagnostic and therapeutic advantages conferred by direct examination of the gastrointestinal tract with a flexible endoscope have made this method a standard procedure of modern medicine. One of the most common endoscopic procedures is a colonoscopy, which is performed for a wide variety of purposes, including: diagnosis of cancer, determination of the source of gastrointestinal bleeding, viewing a site affected by inflammatory bowel disease, removing polyps, and reducing volvulus and intussusception.
While colonoscopies are useful and effective procedures, they are difficult for a physician to perform. Colonoscopies can be painful and include risks to the patient's long term health. These problems stem from the need to push and steer a long, flexible colonoscope through the patient's intestine by pushing the colonoscope into the patient from the colonoscope's proximal side, located outside the patient's body.
It would therefore be desirable to provide a mechanism to facilitate insertion and extraction of an endoscope that lowers the risk of injury to the patient.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,615,331 to Kramman, entitled “Medical instruments with aid to introduction” disclose an elongated medical instrument for the examination or treatment of body cavities, in particular endoscopes, with a device to assist introduction by the principle of the tubular structure which becomes everted. The instrument includes a pipe 2 which is open at both ends and has pressure connectors 3 on the sides, and a flexible, eversible tubular structure 4 running through the pipe 2. The two ends 5, 6 of the tubular structure, each is connected to one end 7, 8 of the pipe 2, the medical instrument 9 runs through the pipe 2 inside the tubular structure 4, and the tubular structure 4 is folded in several double-layers in the region 10 of the distal end 11 of the medical instrument 9.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,702,735 to Kelly, entitled “Device for Movement Along a Passage” discloses a device for moving a tool along a passage, particularly for use in medical procedures, e.g. a colonoscope, which is surrounded by a sheath. The sheath has an inflatable region for engaging the passage wall, e.g. a colon. An annular extension region of the sheath is provided which becomes part of the inflated inflatable region, thereby increasing its length as the fluid pressure acts against a head of a tool to draw the tool along the passage. The annular extension region has sheath parts which face one another by their relative orientation caused by crumpling of the extension region, or the sheath parts are provided by folded portions. The extension region moves together with the tool as the sheath parts sequentially move into the inflated inflatable region. After inflation of the inflatable region of the sheath, inflation pressure acts against an inflatable head carried at the distal end region of the tool to draw the tool along the passage.
US Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0221390 to Konstantin, entitled “Medico-Technical Device Comprising a Self-Lubricating Element” discloses a technical medical device which can be engaged with a human or animal body while comprising a self-lubricating element, such as a an everting tube, that is subjected to internal friction in the device, wherein at least one surface of the self-lubricating element is plasma-treated.